IT does not matter where you are coming from.All that matters is where you are going – Brian Tracy.

Nigeria, since after independence, has been struggling with the creation, development and sustenance of a stable, and acceptable democratic political party system.

The first national elections held in December 1964, and were contested by two political alliances, the Nigerian National Alliance NNA, led by Sir Ahmadu Bello, Premier of the Northern Region, and the United Progressive Grand Alliance,UPGA, led by Dr.Michael Okpara, Premier of the Eastern Region.

The NNA comprised the NPC, the Western-based Nigerian National Democratic Party, NNDP, and opposition parties representing ethnic minorities in the Eastern and Mid-Western regions. The UPGA included the National Council of Nigerian Citizens , NCNC, the Action Group, the Northern Elements Progressive Union (the main opposition party in the Northern Region), and the United Middle Belt Congress (a non-Muslim party strongly opposed to the NPC).

Northerners feared Ibo domination of the federal government and sought support from the Yoruba, while the UPGA accused the Muslim Northerners of anti-Southern, anti-democratic, and anti-Christian attitudes. The election results, of 6th January 1965, gave a large majority to the NNA. The major parties were the Northern People’s Congress (NPC), overwhelmingly dominant in the Northern Region ,the NCNC, dominant in the Eastern Region and junior partner in coalition with the NPC , the Action Group, dominant in the Western Region and the leading opposition group. Dr.Nnamdi Azikiwe, an Igbo man, became the President, and Dr. Tafawa Balewa the Prime Minister.

Policies and platforms of the major parties were similar, generally supporting welfare and development programmes. A look at the manifestoes of the ruling PDP, and the incoming APC today, do not offer much differences, suggesting that 49, years after, we have not moved forward with national political parties. But that’s by the way.

Ten months later the Balewa government was overthrown, the military assumed power, and on 24 May 1966 all political parties were banned.

The Civil War broke out, with the Military ruling till when legal political activities resumed in 1978, and five parties emerged; the National Party of Nigeria,NPN, representing chiefly the North and an educated, wealthy elite; the Nigerian People’s Party (NPP), strong among the Ibos and slightly to the left of the NPN; the Unity Party of Nigeria,UPN, Yoruba-led and Socialist-oriented; the People’s Redemption Party, PRP, strong in the north, advocating radical social change; and the Great Nigeria People’s Party, espousing welfare capitalism and in 1979, Alhaji Shehu Shagari, of the NPN defeated Chief Obafemi Awolowo of the UPN , followed by the NPP.

In the presidential election of August 1983, incumbent President Shagari of the NPN won re-election to a second 4-year term, Obafemi Awolowo of the UPN placed second.   That same month, Shagari’s NPN posted large victories in Senate and House elections. However, there were widespread charges of irregularities in the balloting, and subsequently,all existing political parties were dissolved after the December 1983 coup, led by General Muhammadu Buhari,GMB followed by General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida’s coup.

Two parties, the right-of-center National Republican Convention, NRC, and a left-of-center Social Democratic Party,SDP, were permitted limited activity during the transition from military rule. The two-chamber National Assembly to which they were elected never was granted genuine power. On June 12, 1993, Nigerians apparently elected Chief Moshood Abiola, a Yoruba man, but General Ibrahim Babangida annulled the results, over alleged corruption, and installed Chief Ernest Shonekan for the interim.

On November 17 General Sani Abacha took power, and held it until his sudden death in 1997. General Abubakar Abdusalami took over and allowed political parties to form in 1998.

Three parties were registered for participation in local, state and national elections; the All People’s Party, APP, led by Mahmud Waziri, northerner; the People’s Democratic Party,PDP, led by Soloman Lar, northerner; and the Alliance for Democracy or AD, led by Ayo Adebanjo, Yoruba.

In the February 1999 election General Olusegun Obasanjo,OBJ, of PDP, defeated Chief Olu Falae of AD/APP, with overwhelming majority in the Senate, and House of Representatives.

Leadership squabbles plagued the political parties, while the Yoruba dominant AD had two factions ,Mahmud Waziri, the former chairman of APP defected to the PDP, and with 24 new parties registered for the 2003 elections, the dominance of the PDP became mountainous, under OBJ. Political alliances in the north, and South West, were decimated leaving the South East and other minorities more confused and directionless.

Following a failed third term bid by OBJ, the Yar Ardua/Jonathan leadership was created, and the death of President Yar Ardua, brought Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, GEJ, as President .

The failed third term bid of OBJ, precipitated all kinds of enmities that bogged the PDP till its defeat last month.

GEJ was pushed out through a strange realignment by politicians along the lines of religious, ethnic, and wealthy benefactors of a heavily corrupt system. The AD had become, Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, a Yoruba dominated party which teamed up with CPC/ANPP, a northern dominated party, to form a formidable opposition, the APC, to defeat the ruling PDP.

Unfortunately, however, lack of depth, and ideological foundations in the two parties, the PDP, and APC ,led to massive defections from the PDP to APC, such that while the north voted massively for GMB, votes in other parts of the country were split, except for the South East and South South, throwing the country back to the Pre-1966 conditions of the political parties. Today, we have one overwhelmingly strong Party, the APC, that has exhumed the fears of domination by one ethnic region over the other.

The nature of the frustration, and desperation by the politicians during the campaigns, the hate languages, the curses, the highly incendiary comments and actions, have created fears in the people.

It is not really fear for the much touted fight against corruption, because this APC cannot do much, judging by their membership.

It is more of fear of Ethno-fobia, religious violence, and domination, which needs to be addressed.

People may be gloating over electoral successes, but the under currents are those of suspicion, fear, growing lack of trust among the peoples of Nigeria.

Mr. Clement Udegbe, a legal practitioner, wrote from Lagos.